anybody here know the meaing of the phrase,,,,,common man means?read all the post,and still havent gotten my ansewer,anybody?if you drink beer does that mean your a common man?the reason i ask,it seems that in some peoples mind,if you own a boat ,any boat,then your a ''rich man'',but in some peoples mind,if you dont own a 75k boat,then your ''a common man.help a guy out.

Common = occurs frequently, regular. normal, ordinary etc. If you want to put a $ on it, I'd say $40K-$125K annual.

I am pretty "common" I think... i run an 89 Wellcraft Elipse 216 ... dare I say, BOWRIDER ... I really don't think anyone is looking at me as a "Rich" man... Do you?

My dream if you will is to someday be able to afford to buy, run and maintain something like a mid 90's Formula in the 27 foot range... To me, people running one of those are "rich" men... and women.

I think the "common man" earns 40-70k a year, give or take

Money and perception are all relative. There will always be someone with less money, and some with more.

It's always nice to be able to appreciate the finer things in life while appreciating whatever you have now.
The truly Rich person can enjoy what they have without letting the lust for having more get in their way of enjoying anything.

I remember walking thru all the garages @ Lake Cumberland marine when I was 16-17 early 2000's & just being in complete & total AWE..... The strip poker Cig was brand new in the showroom!!!!

Bingo!!
Common sense does NOT exist in this sport! If it did I dont think most of us would be here.

And stays within his means. Watched too many over the years bite off more than they can chew trying to live a dream..

Your common (man) boater doesn't even know about OSO.
Your common (man) boater doesn't even know about the Miami boat show.

I believe the point of this thread is that boating in general has become so expensive the average person can no longer afford a new boat. Go back 10 yrs or so and you could buy a 22 Scarab new for 37k, or a 25 Sunsation for 42k both with big blocks and on trailer, a 28 Sun was still less than 70k, you could even get a 32 Sun for a little over 80k. Ffw and the same exact boat is near double the $ brand new and the average persons wages did not double in that time span. There are many places to place blame. Merc builds great products but as stated in a previous post the cost is absurd! The cost of raw materials (derrived from petroleum) and not to mention the EPA rules are absurd not to mention the liability insurance for the mfgrs. Now add in the banks not wanting to take on the risk of an average person putting 10-15% down and financing a toy for a reasonable rate. Sure you can blame the mfgrs but the cost is not in their hands. The employees don't make squat. They are in the biz to sell boats. The cheaper they can build the more they sell period! Now add in the cost of a new truck to tow with, that $ has gone up almost at the same rate of a boat. I actually get angry with this subject because I like to take people out and have them experience what it is like to be on a boat. Then they find out the cost (not including fuel) and are wowed. I am a long time member of Boats US, they continually write about getting people into this hobby, past time, way of life (however you want to phrase it) and unfortunately it IS out of reach for the average joe. Makes you wonder about 10yrs from now... Sorry for my rant, I am off the soapbox now. Carry on...